This invention relates to portable floors and more specifically, to portable floors formed from a plurality of interconnecting, floor panels preferably joined by a tongue and groove coupling mechanism.
Portable floors have existed for many years. U.S. Pat. No. 3,310,919 issued to Bue et al. discloses a lockable tongue and groove structure for connecting adjacently situated floor panels. This locking structure includes a groove or channel element associated with one floor panel and a tongue element associated with an adjacent floor panel. Access holes are provided in the floor panels situated along the length of the panels above the groove elements. These access holes are aligned to correspond with bores made through an upper leg portion of the channel element. An externally threaded set screw is inserted from above the dance floor surface into each access hole and aligned with the bore until the bottom of the set screw contacts and compresses the inserted tongue, thus locking the floor panels together. Typically, the tongue has a thick forward end and is tapered rearwardly to a thinner cross-section at its juncture with the floor panel on which it is mounted.
Another prior art example of portable floors, U.S. Pat. No. 5,070,662 issued to Niese incorporates the tongue and groove lockable sections of Bue et al. along with the use of a metal insert having a flared bottom end which is disposed within the bore of each access hole. The flared bottom end, along with a set screw was alleged to prevent stripping of the threads associated with previous tongue and groove locking devices.
A third prior art example of portable floors, U.S. Pat. No. 6,128,881 issued to Bue et al. discloses a plurality of tapered rectangular edge trim panels adapted for connection to the periphery of the dance floor to form an extended floor surface. This prior art uses the tongue and groove locking mechanism not only for floor panel connections but also with the trim panels to form a tapered border about the periphery of the dance floor to prevent not only warping of the dance floor but also to prevent individuals from tripping when stepping onto or off-from the dance floor.
A fourth prior art example is U.S. Patent Application Publication by Rybalov, US 2006/0130378 published Jun. 22, 2006. The Rybalov publication illustrates a floor advertising means whereby a light diffusion plate is arranged between a light source and a top translucent panel. In this way, advertising and information images disposed on the surface of the light diffusion plate, can be viewed through the top panel.
Portable flooring are typically formed of a plurality of floor panels. Each panel itself is typically constructed of a base layer, preferably made of plywood or other material for providing stability and support for a top layer, the surface of which is used for individuals to dance or walk upon. As a result, each sectional panel is relatively heavy.
While it is possible to interchange floor panels having different top surfaces to create a different dance floor surface appearance, realistically, because of the size and weight of each floor panel, it is not economical for a consumer to purchase additional panels which may not be adequately used as well as the additional storage space requirements.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide the ability to alter the surface appearance of a portable floor without requiring the purchase of additional floor panels which have a top surface permanently attached to a base layer.
A further objective of this invention is the ability to alter the surface appearance of a portable floor in a time efficient manner.